New mural pays tribute to Torrox’s lost sugar cane heritage

The artwork covers a wall twelve metres wide by five metres high on Calle Matadero, next to the remains of the old factory that are still standing. The project has involved a municipal investment of around 7,000 euros.

The presentation was attended by the mayor, Óscar Medina; the councillor for the historic centre and trade, José Manuel Fernández; the councillor for agriculture and the environment, Ana Pérez and Kato himself.

Medina said that the artwork “captures the very essence of our town, which is its history”. To recreate the sugar mill, the artist was assisted by local historians Francisco García Ariza and Rafael González, who provided documentation and research on the appearance and operation of the facilities.

José Manuel Fernández explained that the idea began to take shape following the redevelopment of Calle Matadero. The aim was to provide this space with a visual landmark that would help visitors to understand the remains of the Ingenio Alto. The councillor has announced that the site will soon be completed with a sculpture dedicated to a sugarcane cutter.

Kato has created the artwork entirely using spray paint and has employed a grey scale to emphasise its historical appearance. The composition includes a recreation of the old industrial complex, the figure of a worker involved in cutting sugar cane and various references to the urban landscape of the time.

This activity was particularly significant in the municipality. A historical municipal document notes that, in the mid-18th century, the Catastro de Ensenada recorded that around 82 per cent of Torrox’s land area was planted with sugar cane. The crop, introduced to the Iberian Peninsula during the Al-Andalus period, provided employment for centuries in agriculture, transport, industry and trade.

Torrox once had three sugar mills: the Ingenio Alto, or Nuestra Señora de la Concepción; the Ingenio Bajo or San Rafael sugar mill, popularly known as La Fábrica and the Ingenio de San Javier, situated on the coast. Of the first, only a few walls and traces of the area where the water from the irrigation channel turned the water wheel used to crush the sugar cane remain.

The artist chosen to recreate this image has over two decades’ experience in urban mural art and has created works both in and outside Spain. In June, he collaborated with the Málaga-based artist Eduardo Luque, known as Lalone, on two projects in Atlanta to mark the 2026 FIFA World Cup, including the promotional mural ‘Malaga Loves Atlanta’.

The challenge will be to ensure that the mural and the future sculpture also serve to raise awareness among younger generations of an industry that has disappeared, but which is essential to understanding the economic and social development of Torrox.

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